Comparison between effects of ischemic compression and deep friction massage for trigger points in neck and upper back

Abstract

Abstract: Background: It is one of the most common musculoskeletal problem characterized by fatigue, tension headache, sleep disturbance, stiffness, muscle weakness, depression, irritable bowel syndrome and mood disorders so resulting in discomfort and disability for most of the patients. The pain aggravates on activity or stress making it difficult for the patient to perform his daily life activities, which leads to a vicious cycle of pain, spasm and disability. Objective: To evaluate the comparative effects of two manual techniques (1) ischemic compression and (2) deep friction massage on myofascial trigger points in the area of neck and upper back and determine its effects in managing pain, disability and ROM. Materials and method: On the basis of inclusion criteria, total 36 female students of different universities were selected and randomly allocated into two groups by lottery method. One group received ischemic compression therapy and the second group received deep friction massage. Twelve treatment sessions were given in four weeks on alternative days. The duration of the study was 6 months. Pre-treatment and post-treatment measurements were taken. Results: The greatest improvement has shown by ischemic compression therapy with NPRS mean 1.17±1.098 and NDI mean 16.67±5.531 respectively with a P-value=0.00 at the end of treatment while the cervical ROM was equally enhanced in both treatment groups. Conclusion: This research concludes that IC (ischemic compression) is more effective than the DFM (deep friction massage) in patients with MTrP's in the neck and upper back for decreasing pain and disability. But for increasing cervical ROM, both therapeutic approaches are equally useful. Keywords: Deep friction massage (DFM), Ischemic compression (IC), Myofascial pain syndrome (MPS), trigger points (TPs)